The Supreme Court and Benign Elite Democracy in Japan

Innovatively interpreting Japanese politics as a ’benign elite democracy’, and based on unprecedented access to former and current justices of the Supreme Court of Japan, this book represents the first empirical study of judicial decision making under the Constitution of Japan. Author Hiroshi Itoh examines the Court’s records in upholding civil rights and liberties, preserving the conformity of lower levels of laws and regulations to the Constitution, and maintaining the Court's relationships to the political branches.